Rafael Nadal injury: Shocking pics as ace quits Australian Open

Rafael Nadal is forced to quit the Australian Open with an apparent leg injury

Rafael Nadal has been forced to pull out of the Australian Open due to injury

“We have seen more times than I would have liked in difficult situations but we have also experienced great moments, I know I am in the best hands,” Nadal said.

Cotorro himself, who has worked with tennis players for more than two decades, believes the injuries Nadal keeps suffering are as much to do with the modern game as anything.

"There have been many changes in this sport (racquet material, tracks, speed of the game, training systems…) and that price is being paid by players in the form of injuries, new injuries and that increasingly affect more to the youngest," said Cotorro.

“We have to work to be a benchmark in sports medicine in Madrid.”

Nadal’s uncle and former coach Toni meanwhile also believes there are inherent problems that his nephew and other injuries have highlighted.

“In the end, tennis is a very wear-and-tear sport, we've seen it in recent years and in recent times, too many players have been injured, and last year at the [ATP World Tour Finals], only five of the best players were not injured, and the sixth Rafael, he got injured there, it's too much,” Nadal told Spanish broadcaster Television Espanola.

"Now we see Murray was working with and Djokovic with problems, [Gustavo] Kuerten had them too.

“They should do something, we have to find that the game is not so bad for the players, and for that there are systems and we have to try to look for it, and I think that especially the International Tennis Federation, which deals with the development, of children should be attentive to these things.”